PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 221.
Congressional Research Service
Version 36 · Passed House amended · Dec 7, 2009
Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative Reauthorization Act of 2009 - Amends the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative Act to define "Northwest Straits" as the marine waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and of Puget Sound from the Canadian border to the south end of Snohomish County, Washington.
Sets forth the membership of the Northwest Straits Advisory Commission. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, to appoint an employee of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to serve as a liaison between the Commission and the Department of Commerce and to attend the Commission's meetings and events as a nonvoting participant. States the goal of the Commission as the protection and restoration of the marine waters, habitats, and species of the Northwest Straits region in Washington to achieve ecosystem health and sustainable resource use. Enumerates the duties of the Commission and establishes benchmarks for its work. Requires the Commission to submit annual reports to Congress and the Under Secretary on its activities and its progress in achieving specified benchmarks.
Authorizes the Manager of the Shorelands and Environmental Assistance Program of Washington's Department of Ecology, upon the recommendation of the Commission and the Director of the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, to appoint and terminate a Director of the Commission. Requires the Director to be confirmed by the Commission.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
Provides for the establishment of marine resources committees in specified counties of Washington.
Authorizes the Director of the Commission and the Director of the State of Washington Department of Ecology to establish the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Foundation as a nonprofit foundation to support the Commission and the marine resources committees established by this Act.
People & committees
Rep. Larsen, Rick [D-WA-2] · D–WA
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 221.
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H13530-13532)
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H13530-13532)
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 1672.
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H13530-13532)
Ms. Bordallo moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 206.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 111-354.
Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 111-354.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife Discharged.
Subcommittee Hearings Held.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife.
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Dec 5, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.1672 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.1672 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.1672 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.1672 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.